Nevada mammals

Merriam's Shrew in Nevada

Sorex merriami

Native to Nevada S3 Vulnerable in Nevada

Not listed as nonindigenous in Nevada by USGS NAS; native to its Nevada range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

AI-generated image: Merriam's Shrew in side profile on dry soil among rocks. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyAI-generated image: Merriam's Shrew sniffing dark lava rock in dry grassland. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy
AI-generated image No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyMerriam's Shrew in side profile on dry soil among rocksAI-generated image No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracyMerriam's Shrew sniffing dark lava rock in dry grassland

Merriam's Shrew in Nevada, by the numbers

Occasional in Nevada 72nd most recorded of 142 mammals logged in Nevada

44 occurrence records

Records from 2000–2026.

44 total records count every Nevada occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 34 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Merriam's Shrew in Nevada

Most sightings fall in July to August.

34 Nevada occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Nevada records (table)
MonthRecords
January1
February0
March1
April1
May2
June4
July13
August8
September1
October3
November0
December0

Monthly merriam's shrew occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Nevada, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Nevada, with recorded sightings peaking in July–August.

Occurrence map

Where Merriam's Shrew has been recorded in Nevada

44 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

44 Nevada records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
High Schells Wilderness 3
Pine Forest Range Wilderness Area 2
Great Basin National Park 1
Kershaw-Ryan State Park 1

Protected places with the most merriam's shrew sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Nevada

CountyRecords
Elko County 23
White Pine County 8
Lander County 4
Humboldt County 4
Esmeralda County 2
Mineral County 1
Lincoln County 1
Nye County 1

The complete county distribution, spread across 8 Nevada counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Nevada records for the merriams shrew are anchored by Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and Great Basin National Park. They show where people have reported it, not how many animals live there.

The Nevada records bridge the state’s southern desert country and its higher central or northern ranges. That broad spread matters more than any single hotspot. The strongest reporting falls in summer, when Nevada’s high country is easiest to reach but low deserts are hottest. That may shape where observers submit records.

The file combines 0 research-grade iNaturalist records and 44 GBIF records. Those 44 records measure documented encounters, not Nevada’s population size. It’s native to Nevada. Nevada doesn’t specifically list it under the state’s conservation framework, and the IUCN lists it as Least Concern.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

AI-generated image: Merriam's Shrew in side profile on dry soil among rocks. No public-domain photograph of this species exists. This image was generated with AI from verified reference material and reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy
Full species profile Merriam's Shrew Sorex merriami Size 6.2 cm2.4 in Weight 5 g0.2 oz View the full profile

More mammals in Nevada in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"